Elendilva Avathar
by FringeElement
Summary: The path to redemption is never easy. But can a demon with a shrouded past see through the Darkness into the Light? With the help of the Noldor, an outcast demon may find her way into the West….


BAuthor:/b FringeElement  
BAuthor's email:/b fringelement@frenzy.org  
BRating:/b PG (it's about demons. heh.)  
BSummary:/b The path to redemption is never easy. But can a demon with a shrouded past see through the Darkness into the Light? With the help of the Noldor, an outcast demon may find her way into the West….  
BDisclaimer:/b None of this belongs to me, with the exception of the basic plot, my ideas on demons, demon-cats, and their collars. Everything else belongs to the God of Fantasy, one of the Ainur, J.R.R. Tolkien. So don't sue me. No copyright infringement intended, blah, blah, blah. Dokuhebi belongs to herself; she merely lets me borrow her every so often. The Noldor's horses, on the other hand, have been rumored to actually be lackeys of Bill the Pony, who is planning to take over the world.  
  
BA/N:/b This can be described as a crossover of sorts. I have taken Middle-Earth, sometime during the Third Age before the War of the Ring, and added quite a bit to it. K'raelor, the completely un-Tolkienish demon homeland, is located far southeast of Mordor. My ideas on demon (rauko) society are not based on Tolkien's books at all. Most names in this fic, with the exception of 'Dokuhebi' (which is in Japanese), are in Quenya Elvish.  
  
IValarauko-/i Balrog  
Irauko-/i demon  
IThe Council/i- the current ruling force of the demons.  
  
BElendilva Avathar/b  
  
  
Shuff. Shuff. Shuff.  
  
The soft sound of footsteps on pine needles permeated the silent forest. There weren't many animals in the forests surrounding K'raelor. They all knew better.  
  
Shuff. Shuff. Shuff.  
  
Dokuhebi looked up from the shadows where she sat. She was on sentry duty, and as usual, the night had been uneventful. She had stopped her scouting for a short break. Nwalmenya lay across her lap, shining darkly in the faint moonlight. Her demon-cat, Leuca, lay next to her. His ears swiveled, trying to locate the soft sound.  
  
Shuff. Shuff. Shuff.  
  
She stood up and, Leuca sprang lightly to his feet. Nwalmenya was gripped in her left hand, while her right strayed to her favorite dagger, Miriel, which was sheathed at her waist. It wasn't often that there was disturbances near K'raelor, as all intelligent creatures knew to stay far away from the demon homeland, and any lesser mortal would never have made it even this far- there were many Dark creatures residing in these woods.   
She herself was a relatively lesser demon, a simple rauko. They were, effectively, the peasants of the demon world. They made good scouts, and fought well, so the Council had assigned a great many of them to Outer Scouting, and Outer Sentry positions. After all, they were disposable and easily replaced, in the Council's eye. Then again, the Council was losing power as many factions of Valarauko became displeased with the bureaucratic idiocies that had replaced what had once been a great government of war.  
Leuca stopped, his tail twitching. The collar around his neck had begun to pulse with a low, red light. Dokuhebi froze- danger. And it was getting closer. Signaling Leuca to follow her, she slipped back into the shadows near the bushes. As she wound her way towards the area where the sound seemed to come from, Leuca's collar pulsed brighter and brighter.  
  
Shuff. Shuff. Shuff.  
  
Whatever (or whoever) it was, it wasn't trying particularly hard to keep silent. This puzzled Dokuhebi, as all creatures knew to at least be careful near K'raelor. Perhaps it was another demon, but then the danger sensor in Leuca's collar should have pulsed green, not red.   
She stopped. Leuca's collar was pulsing bright red, very fast. She hissed a word in the Black Speech, and it darkened. It would do no good if her danger signal gave her away.  
Suddenly, the entire forest around her started getting brighter. Pausing, she thought she could see movement ahead of her. Despite her loathing of sunlight, she seemed drawn towards the shimmering light, and began walking towards it. Leuca stopped where he was, growling slightly as the distance between them grew.  
The light entranced her, drowning her senses in its soft glow. It swirled around her like a whirlpool, filling her with a sensation she'd never felt before. She felt herself walking forward, and in the back of her mind she thought that maybe that wasn't the smartest thing to do, but the thought was lost in the power of the light.  
She kept on walking. As she broke through a clump of bushes, she saw where the light emanated from. Three tall beings walked along between the trees, each leading a tall white horse. The horses had been what she heard- the three humanoids were silent as they walked. Dokuhebi stared. The beings…their long blonde hair, pointy ears, and overall beauty marked them as elves. Not just any elves, either. High Elves. The Noldor.  
Dokuhebi dropped to one knee, her head bowed. The Noldor had held jewels- crystals, perhaps -that shone with a bright white light. She could feel the elves' eyes on her, penetrating. Her mind was filled with awe, and fear, and something else she couldn't describe but felt wonderful.  
"Look up, child."  
The voice was soft, yet powerful. Somehow it didn't surprise her that it was female, and spoke in Quenya. She felt the light on her face as she turned upwards, and for the first time since she could remember, it felt good. She looked into the clear, blue eyes of the Elf. They seemed endless, like portals into some infinite world of light. The seemed to shine with the Light, and were so peaceful…so beautiful.  
Pure joy and happiness flowed through Dokuhebi, such as she had never felt before. The simple presence of the Noldor made her feel like she had never felt before- the emotions swirled around her, threatening to suck her in and leave her at their mercy. Sadness, and a strange longing tinged what she felt. Suddenly, she remembered where she was…who she was.  
"You must go no further," she managed to force out of her dry throat.  
The Elf blinked, the cocked her head slightly to the side.  
"Why not, young one? For, indeed, though we have not been here for many long years, we are not inclined to leave this place without healing it."  
Dokuhebi bowed her head again.  
"This is but the outskirts of the demon homeland, K'raelor. There are many Dark creatures there, too many for even three Noldor. To go further would be certain death, for a being of the Light."  
A second Elf stood in front of her. She reached out and tilted Dokuhebi's face upwards, looking into her eyes. Dokuhebi could feel the silky touch of the Elf's pale hand on her chin.  
"There are many creatures here that avoid a path of the Light," the first Elf began, "And you, child, walk in the Dark."  
The second Elf, whose hand still cupped Dokuhebi's chin, studied her a moment, before adding, "But you're not quite like them, are you, little one?"  
Dokuhebi stayed silent. She wasn't sure how to answer, even if she could have. Her voice seemed to have escaped her. The second Elf withdrew her hand and stepped back.  
"Many thanks for the warning, young one. Perhaps we will return. Perhaps not," the Elf paused, a furtive smile gracing her face, "And remember, child- your roots offer the path to Light."  
With these parting words, the three Noldor mounted their white steeds and rode swiftly away between the trees. Dokuhebi still knelt at the spot where they had been, in a daze. The light was gone, leaving only the cool shadows on deep night. She shuddered, as if trying to shake the remnants of light off her skin. She didn't understand what had happened…couldn't begin to understand.   
Leuca stalked up to her, his tail waving. Smiling slightly, she put out a hand to check the danger sensor. He sniffed it warily, and then allowed her to touch his collar. It shone briefly with a pale blue light, signaling that her watch would soon be over.  
Suddenly she felt the eyes of another creature resting on her. She looked up. Staring at her was a red-eyed black hawk- a Council spy, sent to monitor the efficiency of the Outer Scouts. It must have seen everything. Dokuhebi barely had time to consider using an Illusion on the hawk before it screeched and flew swiftly off.  
  
Dokuhebi groaned. She was screwed.  
  
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BA/N-/b this was written under the influence of the LotR Soundtrack, or more specifically, the 'Lothlorien', 'The Council of Elrond', and 'May It Be' tracks. This may account for the weird, sappy elvishness of this fic. 


End file.
